Chinese Drywall Information, Facts & Figures

Fort Myers, Naples, Lehigh Acres, Cape Coral all have alarming amounts of Chinese Drywall, probably more than any other counties in the US.Below are some general facts and figures regarding this issue.

For information on our Chinese Drywall Inspections in Naples and Fort Myers areas, please see this page:

These facts and figures are for general knowledge and are believed accurate.These figures come from the FLDOH, the CDC, the CPSC and others.These figures were collected by myself at various meetings and symposiums.

Approximately 275,516 metric tons of Chinese drywall was imported into the US.Of that, 184,069 tons were used in Florida.That’s 67% of all of the Chinese drywall used right here in the SunshineState.

The total estimated number of homes Chinese drywall was used in Florida is 25,180.Only 12,510 homes are estimated to contain Chinese drywall outside of Florida.

All Chinese drywall contains elevated levels of strontium.Corrosive Chinese drywall (not all Chinese drywall is corrosive) contains both elevated levels of strontium and elemental sulfur.It is believed to be this combination that is causing the problems.Domestic drywall contains some strontium, although at lower levels, but contains very little, if any, elemental sulfur (S8).

Testing inside homes for gasses given off by Chinese drywall has not at all been reliable.It has been tried by several agencies and universities with no success.Gasses primarily tested for were hydrogen sulfide, carbonyl sulfide, and carbon disulfide.Air quality testing is NOT a reliable method of testing for Chinese drywall.

It is believed that the Chinese drywall will eventually outgas, but it will take decades.

Hydrogen sulfide by itself does not appear to cause significant corrosion, but experiments determined that H2S when combined with elemental sulfur created rapid, significant corrosion.

US manufactured drywall contains about 60% synthetic gypsum, a natural byproduct of the scrubbers used on smoke stacks.This surprisingly yields very pure gypsum.Chinese drywall contains little to no synthetic gypsum.

It is legal at this time to dispose of Chinese drywall at any landfill.It is not considered a hazardous waste and probably will stay that way.

Both Carrier (HVAC manufacturer) and various universities have concluded that the primary elements that are destroying AC coils are a combination of formic and acetic acids.The acetic acid is believed to cause the blackening, while the formic acid is believed to cause the deep pitting and “ants nest” tunnels causing failures.

S8 (elemental sulfur) is the primary reactant in emissions of corrosive Chinese drywall.

Interesting note:The corrosion of copper will continue – even after it is removed from the Chinese drywall exposure.It appears that the black, sooty deposit caused by the Chinese drywall will continue to corrode all metals, especially copper.A thorough cleaning may stop this, but removing all of these deposits from the pits caused by the corrosion is difficult at best.

These homes are repairable.After thorough removal, cleaning and ventilation, there is no evidence of cross contamination.

Remediation standards are currently available; I am compiling them and will publish them at a later date.

In one study home, 5 different types of drywall by different manufacturers were found.This illustrates the difficulty in inspecting homes for Chinese drywall.